SF Hip Hop Dancefest is a Global Affair
November 20, 2008
The San Francisco Hip Hop DanceFest is not your ordinary showcase of hip-hop dance. It’s a global extravaganza of artistic talent that happens to center around the hip-hop culture.
Now in its 10th year, the celebrated DanceFest hits the stage for another year of pop lockin’ and B-boyin’ from Nov. 21 to 23 at the Palace of Fine Arts. The stage will be stormed by 22 different hip-hop dance companies from as far as the Philippines and South Africa. There will also be a screening of the hip-hop dance documentary, Everything Remains Raw by Moncell Durden and a performance by Popin’ Pete from the legendary Electric Boogaloos. Even the roller boys of Breaksk8 from MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew will take the stage to fuel the world’s growing love for hip-hop dance.
“I think the hip-hop dance scene has blown up,” says Micaya, the one-name creative director and founder of the SF Hip Hop DanceFest. “You look at America’s Best Dance Crew on MTV, and it made the groups on that show household names.”
The event has evolved over the past decade to become the ultimate hip-hop showcase in the Bay Area. Micaya began with more modest showcases of her hip-hop dance students at smaller venues in San Francisco, and eventually, she began inviting other companies with different dance aesthetics. It grew from there.
“When it started, I was happy with how the San Francisco Bay Area hip-hop community supported the showcase,” says Micaya, who is also founder of The City’s Soul Force dance company. “Then I started extending to other states and countries, and they started coming.”
This year, the DanceFest has a roster that reads like a hip-hop map of Epcot Center. There’s Michael Ryna from the Netherlands, O.T.I from Vancouver and two companies from the United Kingdom called Flawless and Plaque — two companies that astonished Micaya.
“I love the footage they sent; I couldn’t believe how amazing they are,” Micaya says. “I can’t wait to see them.”
For Asian Americans, there is a healthy representation at this year’s festivities — particularly from California. There’s Soul Sector from San Francisco, Formality from San Diego and DS Players from San Jose.
Funkanometry SF, known for their eccentric style of choreography, is a professional company and a non-profit organization co-founded by Emerson Aquino, a Filipino American, and Kyle Lin, who is of Chinese-Burmese descent. About 85 percent of the company is at least part Asian.
Gina Rosales, a member of the company, will be taking the stage for her sixth Hip Hop DanceFest and has seen a significant evolution of Asian Americans in the world of hip-hop dance.
“Asian Americans have made a huge impact on hip-hop dance choreography, especially here in California,” says Rosales . “Many of the most recognized dance crews in California are predominantly Asian. The choreography scene is a place where many Asians find their place and feel comfortable.”
The San Francisco Hip Hop DanceFest happens Nov. 21-23. For more information, visit sfhiphopdancefest.com.
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